Round Two
by Lilune-E
Summary: Two years after the defeat of Sun Li, a new threat begins to rise from the East. Rated T for some bad language and occasional violence.
1. Chapter One : Visions

**Disclaimer:** Don't think it's necessary to mention this since this is published on a _Fanfiction_-site, but, just to be sure, Jade Empire belongs to Bioware and has nothing to do with me, except for me owning the game, of course.

**Summary:** Two years after the defeat of Sun Li, a new threat begins to rise from the East.

**Warnings:** Rated **T** for **Teen**, for some bad language and occasional violence.

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Chapter One : Visions 

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She woke up with a start. A headache like nothing she ever felt before hit her like one of the Dragonfly's projectiles hitting an Imperial flyer. Panting heavily, her fingers sought a way to her temples while she tried to sit up straight.

This was not good.

Moments earlier, she had experienced quite a disturbing dream. The non-materialized form of the Water Dragon had appeared before her once more, and the riddles the god had told the girl spooked through her head.

"Remember that it isn't over," she had said.

But what? What wasn't over? Her battle with Master Li?

Her face grimaced at the thought of it, her heart beat accelerating rapidly. Could it be true? Surely she had seen a lot of cases in which fallen enemies weren't quite as dead as she had thought, Death's Hand, or should she say Sun Kin, was a good example for it. Could it be that Sun Li had found a way to stay alive?

No. No, impossible. If he was truly still alive, she would have felt it, she would have felt that there was something wrong. No, Master Li was dead.

Or was he…?

She sighed heavily. There was no need to panic. Or at least, not now. She should calm down, give it some rest. Yes, she would come back to it once her mind had settled down.

Slowly, she got up.

Her name was Jiayin, or Fallen Leaf Jiayin as some of her fellow students had named her back at the Two Rivers' School. That time seemed so far away now… Nearly every student was now dead, killed in a raid which had destroyed both the School and the village itself. She was one few survivors, being together with Dawn Star at the time of the attack, a beautiful girl who she had practically grown up with. Along with another one, calling himself Sagacious Zu, they had escaped, and what followed was a long and tiring journey to the Imperial City to free Master Li, Head of the School, who had been captured by the attackers.

The journey had made quite an impact on everyone in the Jade Empire; Jiayin had gained many friends who had followed her to the heart of the Empire, where Sagacious Zu had lost his life after helping her to escape from Death's Hand, the Emperor's right hand. Jiayin eventually had to face the Emperor himself, only to be killed by the one she had called her Master after she had defeated his brother. She got brought back to life by the Water Dragon in Dirge, and after defending her long lost home, she had faced Master Li and had gotten her revenge…

After that battle, she had been convinced that a long period of peace and prosperity would follow for the Empire. One of her followers, the Emperor's daughter Lian, had taken the role upon herself as the leader of the Empire, and Jiayin had to admit she was surprised at how well her friend was doing. She, on the other hand, had chosen to live a life in the shadows, far away from the Imperial City, where she lived the life of a hermit. She would only show herself in public at the anniversary of their victory against Sun Li, which was celebrated throughout the entire Empire. Her humble home was located in the ruins of Dirge, where she would look after the fountains and the temple of the Water Dragon.

She had thought that everything was okay, that life in the Empire wouldn't get threatened ever again. But it seemed she was wrong.

Giving one last look to her room that was located in the Temple itself, she knew what she had to do. It was time to look how Dawn Star was doing.

* * *

**A/N:** I know, I know, short. But hey, that's only reasonable for a first chapter. And concerning Chapter Two, I'm not fast with updating, since I get easily distracted b something else to do. I'll try to update as quick as possible, but you've been warned… (Muahahahahaa!) 

Anyway, I hope I've done a good job so far, and I would love to hear your opinions about Round Two so far. Hope to see you again in Chapter Two : Flower Gardens!


	2. Chapter Two : Wondering

**A/N:** Okay, so maybe I _did_ update faster than planned, but that's just due to an unexplainable boost of inspiration.. For Disclaimers, summaries and warnings, see the previous chapters, I'm not gonna waste precious space on them in every chapter I publish.

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**Chapter Two : Wondering**

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(**A/N:** So I changed the title… Sue me.)

Dawn Star had lived a simple life after the battle at the Palace. She had returned to Two Rivers and had replanted her garden, with one flower in it for every student that had fallen during the raid. She had rebuild the hut that used to stand right in front of the gate that had separated the School from the village, and used it as her home.

One day, she heard a familiar voice outside her hut, and when she went to look, she saw Kia Min, a fellow student who had also survived the raid. She told Dawn Star that she came to bring her respects to Two Rivers, since it had been two years after its destruction, and after a few weeks of talking about their experiences, they decided to rebuild the School, and hopefully the Village.

Kia Min had sent messages to several other survivors, and together they had rebuild the School until it looked almost exactly how it used to. But then the question rose who would be its Master. Everyone had looked to Dawn Star, but she refused. She just wanted to live in peace, and although she agreed to still participate in some of the School's happenings and teachings, being its leader just didn't appeal to her.

And so all decided to make Kia Min Mistress (**A/N:** or are female leaders also called Master?) from the School.

It didn't take long before word spread through the Empire about the rebuild School, and soon Kia Min had enough students to teach to last a lifetime.

Dawn Star had enjoyed her life so far. If Kia Min would ever need help, she was glad to jump in and teach the students a thing or two. But she wasn't bound to the School, and she loved the freedom that it offered.

But still, not one day would pass without her thoughts going back to her journey from two years before. Every minute before falling to sleep was spent thinking about her friends, about the fallen Sagacious Zu, and, most importantly, about the conversation she and her childhood friend Jiayin had had after Jiayin's battle with Master Li. Her words had been disturbing. Never known her past, Dawn Star always wondered what had happened before she had arrived at the School. She always used dream about who her parents were, what had happened to them, if they were still alive… But nothing could have prepared her for the news Jiayin had brought.

"Master Li was your father."

**Bam**, just like that.

In just 5 seconds, her world was turned upside down. Not only had she just found out who her father was, but suddenly she was of royal blood as well. And just as quick as she had gained a father, she had lost him again. Sun Li was now dead, along with her hope of finding her family.

But, she thought grudgingly, that meant she and Empress Lian were related too. She still couldn't believe that that uptight, selfish look-at-me-I-am-royal-bow-before-me-twit was her cousin.

No, it was wrong to think like that. Lian, or Silk Fox, had her heart in the right place, and although some irritating habits, she still was a good soul.

Yes. If she would think of Lian like that, being family didn't sound too bad.

But of course, Lian didn't know anything about their bloodband. Dawn Star and Jiayin had decided not to tell anyone else of her heritage, it would only cause an uproar among the people and especially in the Palace.

And so she had gone back to where her journey had started, keeping in touch with her companions and spending days tending her garden.

That is, until Jiayin suddenly stood at her doorstep.

---

Jiayin had heard the news of the rebuild School, yet she still felt awkward when she saw the lean white buildings. A shiver ran down her spine when she realised it looked almost exactly the same. It felt… wrong for some reason. Especially since this was the place where she was raised in a lie.

She quickly shook memories of Master Li away and closed her eyes for a moment, before she heard footsteps coming from her right. When she looked up, she saw a tall, slim woman with long black hair tied up in a ponytail, dressed completely in maroon.

A smile appeared on her face. "Dawn Star."

Her friend was smiling as well, and gave her a brief hug as a greeting. "It's been too long."

Jiayin nodded. "I would have visited sooner, but Kang's flyer needed some… upgrades."

Dawn Star laughed. "Still too shaky for you, huh?"

"I just don't like to be up in the air in a _thing_ that feels as if it could break down any second."

Shaking her head in amusement, Dawn Star suddenly noticed something. "You look… different. Paler. Is everything all right?"

"You usually don't get a tan when you're in an area where it's always clouded."

"You know what I mean, Jiayin."

The target of Dawn Star's frown shook her head. "I'll talk about it later, not here."

The frown of her friend went even deeper, but Jiayin pretended she didn't notice. "So, how's Kia Min doing?"

"Oh, she has her hands well full. She has help, but she's too stubborn to ask anyone.. The students are doing great, though. They all learn quick. It just…"

When Dawn Star stopped in mid-sentence, Jiayin cocked her head to the side a little. "What?"

"It just feel weird, you know? Seeing all those students sparring with each other just brings back more memories than I want."

"Memories aren't wrong, they make us who we are," Jiayin comforted, fully aware how she had stuffed her own unwished memories away just moments ago. "You should just give it some time to get used to it."

Much to her relief, Dawn Star looked a little better. "You're right. You always are. I'm glad you're here to make me feel better, it's just like the old days."

Somehow, "the old days" felt as if they were a couple of elders thinking about their childhood, but Jiayin shrugged it off. "So, want to show me your new home?"

Dawn Star answered by taking her friend by the wrist and dragging her to her hut.

---

Empress Sun Lian, or Silk Fox as she was known to a very small group of people, was bored to death. After hearing to another farmer whining about how his neighbour had let his cattle loose on his land, the beautiful Empress had quietly sought the comfort of her huge bedroom, where she had just finished some scrolls on long swords.

Her own long sword was hidden away in a secret place behind a bookcase, and she starred longingly to where other people would just see a soft yellow wall. If could just take it from its hiding place and sneak out of the Palace, just like she used to do when she was still a Princess…

But that was impossible now. All the exits were guarded, and she had to lose a whole battalion of servants before she could even take a few steps without being followed.

She hated it with all her heart.

But she also knew it was a love/hate-relationship. She wouldn't want to see anyone else ruling the Empire.

"Empress?"

Lian rolled her eyes at the soft knock on her door, knowing exactly who it was. "Yes, Jun?" she sighed.

The door went open, revealing a short, timid woman with black hair tied loosely in a bun. Her eyes stood far away from each other and her nostrils stood wide, but all in all, she had that look upon her that would remind you of a grandmother.

"There's someone wanting to see you," Jun's voice spoke quietly, while she averted her eyes.

Lian sighed once again, this time more aggravated, and she stood up. "Tell him I'll meet him in the Throne Room."

"Her…"

"Excuse me?"

Jun seemed to curl up in a ball, her voice now sounding more as a squeak. "It's a woman, your Highness!"

"Oh. All right then, leave."

Her servant quickly did as she was told, making a bow before she closed the heavy wooden doors behind her.

Empress Lian frowned. Who would want to speak to her at this hour?

---

"Not over? But what was she talking about?"

"I don't know, that's exactly why I came to you."

"Could it be…?"

"No. He's dead, Dawn Star."

"I know, but we thought Death's Hand was dead too."

"Sun Li is dead, otherwise there would still be something wrong with the Water Dragon."

Dawn Star exhaled and took another sip of her freshly-made tea. Jiayin sure was getting a hand at giving her shocking news. If the Water Dragon had told her that something wasn't quite right, it would mean Jiayin had to come to action once more. And of course that would mean Dawn Star had another journey coming. Not following her best friend was out of the question.

But what ever could the Water Dragon mean?

---

Meanwhile, at a dazzling amount of miles away from Two Rivers, an aging man stood at the top of the hill. Piercing brown eyes scanned the area as fingers rubbed his thick chestnut moustache. He kept still for a few moments, before a hand stretched to his left, and than waved forward.

It only took a second before the ground under his feet began to tremble slightly.

A smile appeared on the man's face. The Jade Empire was in for a bloody surprise.

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**A/N: **Cheesy ending, I know, but that was the best I could come up with. Hope you'll let me know how you think about the second chapter, and stand on the look-out for Chapter Three (not giving away titles anymore, since they'll probably change anyway)! 


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